Candle
by OmNomNomAttack
Summary: I am an experiment. I am Avery. I am an Avenger. These are the three things I know for certain. The other thing, Spiderman is bitter because he wasn't asked to join the Avengers and now won't associate with them. Warnings: Graphic content, violence. Pairings: Spiderman(Peter Parker)/OC, Natasha Romanov/Clint Barton, Tony Stark/Pepper Potts. *ON HOLD UNTIL OTHER STORIES ARE DONE*
1. Chapter 1

My life… Rather dull and boring in the scheme of things, after all, I am just one twenty-something female with a slighter build than I find comfortable. These, however, are just facts that I have learned over time. I am unsure of my real age, or even if I have a birthday, not that that matters. Back to my life; while I have no hesitations in writing it down as I do now, I have never spoken of it to anyone. That bit comes in later…

I remember pain, so much pain. There was a white room, men in lab coats and _so many needles._ Everything before that is blank, rather grey. Someone was screaming, it may have been me… Upon closer analysis of the situation, I am actually quite sure it was me. There was shattered glass and people clamped their hands over my mouth. Another needle and everything went dark. I awoke with a large, metal contraption secured around my face. I screamed against it and I could almost hear the metal groan in protest, but it stayed. The men in lab coats, I think they may have been doctors or scientists, knocked me out once more.

My eyes were heavy and there was a terrible, searing pain in my throat. The men in lab coats were out to lunch at the time, expecting me to remain unconscious. The two lab-coated gentlemen remaining were not quick enough as I struggled, freeing a single hand from its bindings and raised it to my throat, not that there was a throat anymore. My throat lay open, I could reach inside and feel my spine and the table either side of it through the blood-slicked folds of skin and pipes at the bottom of the opening, leading into my torso. I shuddered and felt it ripple down my spine, making me scream louder than I had before. The two doctors had made it to my side, restraining me once more. Pinpricks of light appeared in my vision, opening up to a tunnel of light. I walked to the end of the tunnel the darkness at the end engulfing me and I gasped awake.

I was in a room, a new, unstrained gag was cold against the skin of my face, my hands and arms were bound by my sides in a straight jacket. A tube was fed directly into my stomach and it hurt when I squirmed. The next few days all blurred into one, I believe them to be days, I had no concept of time in that room for there was no windows, nor doors, nor any source of light besides brightly shining fluorescent bulb that refused to switch off despite my furious screams.

People would come and people would go, I would slip from consciousness and awake again only to remember that I am trapped here. I remember crying, litres and litres it seemed, things get a bit fuzzy after that. I remember one day, a man came to see me. He greeted me in his suit and tie, telling me that I had a great destiny. I must have looked a mess, eyes red, metal gag, arms strapped to my sides, he didn't make fun, however, and that's how I learned to trust him.

This man would visit me every day, tell me what had happened to me, experimentally, that is… I tried to follow, but he spoke using long words I couldn't work out. By the time I thought I may have a grasp on the meaning, he had been rambling for five minutes more. I have little recollection of this time, I only remember that his name was Agent Coulson. Day by day, I screamed less when he visited me, he told me that if I promised not to scream, the doctors would take off the gag. One day, around a month after my imprisonment, Agent Coulson was joined by a man in a lab coat who was holding a bowl of food. I could smell the food from where I lay though I can't recall what exactly it was.

Agent Coulson told me to be very quiet and he unlocked the gag, taking it off my face. I remember trying to bite him as he cleaned my face before giving me careful spoonfuls of food. I vomited most of it up before trying to speak, but when I started to make sound, Coulson and the man in the lab coat covered their ears and the gag was placed firmly over my mouth.

It was a few days longer before Coulson returned, this time carrying a whiteboard and a marker. He told me that they will allow my hands to be free if I don't struggle. I allowed them to unbind me and he handed me the whiteboard. It had been… I wasn't sure how long, since I had used my hands.

"You may ask me anything you like." Coulson told me as I ran my fingers over the metal mouthguard.

_Who am I?_

Coulson frowned for a moment before choosing his words carefully, (this is the one thing that remains clear as crystal in my memory) "The first successful experiment I have seen in a long time." I frowned before tapping the board again. He sighed slightly, "You don't have a name, not yet anyway. Despite my protests, the others have nicknamed you Avery. I suppose that's as close as you've got." I scribbled furiously on my board before thrusting it into his field of vision.

_Why? What's so bad about Avery?_

In hindsight, I should have left it at that, picked my own name, ask sensible questions, however, at this point in time, I was curious, I knew what many things were but there were no memories attached, which both frightened and intrigued me.

There was that sigh again, and he looked at the only spot of black in my white prison - a security camera. I was sure they had more that I couldn't see. "I suppose I should tell you, in terms you understand, what you've gone through." He took in a deep breath before giving a slight smile. "Officially, you're known as E197, your vocal cords have been severely altered, making your voice super sonic. You can no longer be heard, however, your new… _super power_," the word seemed bitter as he said it, "is based off of an mutant by the name of Sean Cassidy." The name ticked through your brain but you could find no connections. "Not only that, but your DNA has been mixed with a that of another creatures, a _forced mutation _if you will. A red-necked buzzard, to be precise. Tests are still being run as to how that affected you and your abilities are yet to be tested, but I dare say, you'll be relatively powerful."

_I get it._

He smiles at the board before asking me how I felt about all of this.

_How do you think I would feel? "forced mutation" What kind of crap is that? Why didn't I get a say?_

"Maybe that wasn't the right wording. I'll go tell the others to stop calling you Avery." He stood to leave, but I held onto his arm, he turned around, frowning ever so slightly. "What?"

_No, Avery's good. I like it. A bird's cage._

He chuckled uncertainly before nodding. "OK, Avery." With that, he left. I've been Avery ever since.


	2. Chapter 2

If I may, I would like to resume:

I believe that from then on, my hands were left unbound, apart from that time I tried pulling out the tubing in my stomach. I couldn't move for a week (I'm not sure, but I think it was a week) without the doctors coming in and sedating me. That stint was both painful and unsuccessful, but it taught me the limits of my freedom… After that, I tried no more escapes. One day, I have to guess around a year after my original detainment, the door of my room burst open and Coulson stood in the doorway, face serious. Beside him, a man I had never seen. He had dark skin and no hair, this did not trouble me, what troubled me was his eye patch. I felt rather unsettled not being able to see both of his eyes as my own stared back with both interest and fear. This man commanded an aura of respect and seemed to be important, I could tell by the complete silence from beyond my door.

"She is ready." This one line changed my life. More doctors rushed in, sedating me where I sat.

When I awoke, I was in darkness. It scared me, for I had not been around darkness of any form for a year, or - to my knowledge - ever. I was in what was to be my new room, no longer prison. I was in the headquarters of an agency that called themselves S.H.I.E.L.D, not that I really cared.

From there, I trained for almost ten hours a day, martial arts, aerobics, running, armed combat. I had nothing else to do for I was forbidden to see anyone that hadn't been sent to me by the dark man, who was named Nick Fury. It was almost three years after my initial detainment that I was allowed to remove my mouth guard and began class. History was the main focus; wars, politics, the corrupt nature of leaders, I knew it all.

Coulson's visits were few and far between after I was moved, but the visits from Nick Fury increased. I had monthly tests where my powers were put to use as I worked. It was shown that I had superhuman sight and hearing, as well as the super sonic thing. Fury hoped I could use it to harness the power of flight, much like Sean had, but that is yet to be tested. I could now focus my voice to break things that were far away, I'm not sure the exact measurements, but thus far, glass, plastic, metal, wood and one unfortunate intern had suffered from my voice, a mere whisper. I grew more powerful with each weekly lesson that were placed between my tests. As the tests grew more extensive, it was discovered that I had hollow bones which made heavy lifting a difficulty, but none of that really affected me until I began specialised weapons training.

Fury called them 'The Avengers', that they could find me a weapon to specialise in if my voice ever failed. I heard Fury briefing the first one as I meditated one morning. They stood outside of the door for almost ten minutes, I was sure they were watching me, before Fury muttered to them; "This is her first new human contact in over a year." I smirked at this, getting to my feet silently, smoothing my white singlet and track pants.

The newcomer walked in, red hair in curls about her face in a black outfit that made me wonder how she put it on - or was she poured into it? She gave me a sceptical up-and-down look before turning to the wall of mirrors that concealed the scientists, ready to tranquilize me at any second.

"Can we get four guns in here?"

The loudspeaker crackled for a moment, making me wince, but the rough, uncertain voice of a scientist came back, "Uh… what type… Uh… Miss Romanov?" He stuttered and the woman, Miss Romanov, called back.

"Glock nineteen." She said. A young man in a lab coat came racing out, a military case in his arms. He nervously put down the case and ran back to the mirrored door. Romanov smiled, opening the case and took out two guns, passing them to me. I loaded the guns and stood ready as she nodded approvingly and did the same. For the next hour she lectured me on proper gun maintenance and technique, although she said I was 'better than expected'.

The next few hours were taken up with martial arts in which both my legs and an arm were broken. I smiled, despite the pain; I'd felt worse. She fussed, asking me if I was alright. I had to bite down on my hand so I wouldn't make a sound and the doctors bandaged me up.

"D-does this happen often?" She muttered as she watched. I nodded.

"Its sort of a weekly thing, but she heals fast and her bones are brittle." One of the scientists said. A look of horror overcame Miss Romanov's face as she spluttered for words before storming out. I could hear her shouts from here I lay.

"She's a child!"

"No, she's a soldier."

"That's sick."

"No, that's the government. She volunteered."

My stomach dropped at Fury's words. Something about past me had wanted to escape themselves so badly they volunteered to a test subject for the guinea pig. I shook that thought from my head and concentrated on the pain I felt, trying to spread it so my body had a warm burn throughout it. Its sick, I know, but it helped. Breaking bones didn't really hurt anymore, it sort of just… warmed the injured area.

I am disgusting.


End file.
